60,000-square-foot pizza place will fill mall level

John Parlet checks out progress on his restaurant at Buena Park Downtown. John's Incredible Pizza will take up the mall's entire lower level with 60,000 square feet of pizza buffets and entertainment, including rides, bumper cars, games, and big-screen TVs. Parlet runs eight more of the restaurants across the state. MICHAEL MELLO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

BUENA PARK - By midsummer, Knott's Berry Farm won't be the only place in town with rides and games.

That's when John's Incredible Pizza is scheduled to throw open its doors at Buena Park Downtown. It checks in at 30,000 square feet planned for buffet pizza and salad bars - and 30,000 more square feet dedicated to entertainment and games, including a spinning indoor ride, bumper cars and a miniature bowling alley.

"We'll seat over 800 people in here," owner John Parlet said, proudly, while touring the site this week. "We can host 10 different birthday parties simultaneously."

The restaurant will take up the lowest level of the mall, which used to host its food court. Parlet estimates his restaurant could pull in 11,000 to 14,000 customers a week.

It will be the first Orange County restaurant for Parlet, who moved the base of his company's operations from San Luis Obispo to Lake Forest five years ago. He runs eight pizza restaurants from Roseville in Sacramento County to Riverside.

"We've wanted a location somewhere in Orange County for a long time. This one met all our criteria," he said, from having copious parking to being on a main boulevard in a dense population center with lots of families.

The $8.5 million restaurant has enthusiastic support from City Hall.

"We're very excited," said May Wong Hui, the city's economic development director. Hui and City Manager Rick Warsinski visited the John's Incredible Pizza in Montclair last year. Hui said she was impressed by what she saw, beyond just the enormity of the restaurant.

"It's very family-oriented. Our goal (as a city) is to attract families to the area," she said, and along with them dollars to Buena Park Downtown. "Hopefully, they'll stop and shop at the mall. We hope more tenants would come to the mall."

Malls are always looking to increase traffic, and Buena Park Downtown is no exception, especially when it has room for rent. Last year, mall anchor Steve & Barry's shut down after the chain declared bankruptcy. Buena Park Downtown representatives would not comment for this story.

The restaurant will feature several different dining rooms, each with various themes, from Vertical (extreme sports) to Fusion (a nightclub scene) to Cabin Fever (a quiet dining room with a fireplace). The game area will feature skill games, a miniature bowling alley and Twister, a ride that can rise into the air and tip, all while carrying 24 passengers.

The restaurant's kitchen will have four conveyor ovens capable of baking 800 to 1,000 pizzas an hour.

Visitors to John's Incredible Pizza pay one price ($5.99 at lunch and $7.99 for dinner) for unlimited pizza, salad, soup and dessert from the buffets. Some of the games cost an additional fee.

"It's something pretty special," Parlet said. "We're all about the whole family. We want them to come out and have a good time without breaking the bank."

John Parlet checks out progress on his restaurant at Buena Park Downtown. John's Incredible Pizza will take up the mall's entire lower level with 60,000 square feet of pizza buffets and entertainment, including rides, bumper cars, games, and big-screen TVs. Parlet runs eight more of the restaurants across the state. MICHAEL MELLO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Construction crews work on the new John's Incredible Pizza restaurant at the Buena Park Downtown mall. John's Incredible Pizza will take up the mall's entire lower level with 60,000 square feet of pizza buffets and entertainment, including rides, bumper cars, games, and big-screen TVs. MICHAEL MELLO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
More than half of the 60,000 square foot John's Incredible Pizza restaurant scheduled to open this summer at Buena Park Downtown will be dedicated to entertainment-like the game room pictured here. COURTESY JOHN'S INCREDIBLE PIZZA
A look at what the 'Cabin Fever' room will look like at the John's Incredible Pizza restaurant scheduled to open this summer at Buena Park Downtown. The 60,000 square foot restaurant will have several other dining rooms, each with its own themed décor. COURTESY JOHN'S INCREDIBLE PIZZA
John Parlet, left, discusses entertainment strategy with Mark Mowry of Rocklin, Calif. Parlet's restaurant, John's Incredible Pizza, will take up the mall's entire lower level with 60,000 square feet of pizza buffets and entertainment, including rides, bumper cars, games, and the big-screen TVs Mowry's company is installing. Parlet runs eight more of the restaurants across the state. MICHAEL MELLO, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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